Reviews by getch:

a-extremly dark and black, not brown a black color, thick head and overall a very thick beer.

s-a dull chocolate smell, like a old chocolate that has been sitting at your grandparents house and is still there because your scared to try it, beause of how old it possible could be.

t-a bitter taste with a bad after taste, maybe its the alc. content in the beer, but i guess with the dull smell comes the dull taste, my beer is alittle chilled, i waited for 10 mins after I took it out of the frig, but i cannot image this beer warm, or any warmer than i have, maybe some hidden taste?

m- extremly thick, i like that it is thick and lingers in the mouth for some time, but because of the taste of it, it makes it worse.

d-I will not have this beer, again, i rate it average just because it prob tastes a lot better where consumed in the country of origin, Sri Lanka (867 characters)

More User Reviews:

4/5 rDev +0.8%

I am surprised to see the metallic taste n 2 different reviews. I found this Stout to be very smooth, malty and pleasant tasting. I think Ceylon does a good job of hiding the high ABV which is uncommon in a Stout. My Rating as 4.0 is a Good Beer, not a wow -can't live without. but a Beer I would recommend. (315 characters)

L: Pours deep dark brown to black under a 2”clingy tan foam collar with a very fine bead. S: Chocolate, dark dried fruit, no burnt or harsh aromas. T: Hits the palate with coffee and chocolate mocha flavors. An initial sweetness highlights the mocha flavors then gives way to a soft, grainy finish. No burnt or harsh flavors. F: Has an incredible texture that is exceptionally smooth, creamy and soft in the mouth. Full bodied to chewy, medium to medium low carbonation. O: A surprisingly well made easy to drink beer. (525 characters)

Heavy medium bodied with a very smooth texture that approaches creamy. Above normal carbonation level with effervescence from the middle on.

The outstanding flavor profile is intense, complex and well balanced. It begins with a blend of flavors that separate into chocolate, a hint of coffee and very subtle prune. In the middle, the big malt sweetness comes forward with a molasses and caramel flavor against a mild bitterness of citric hops and roast. The finish is a slow sweet fade and leaves you with that nice slight alcohol burn at the back of the throat amid an effervescent burst. (765 characters)

Pours a pitch black with a reddish tint near the bottem of the glass with a slight brown head,aroma is of burnt fruit and bitter chocolate.Very intense flavors in this one burnt fruit and bitter sweet chocolate with some nice earthiness in the finish.I really like this stout very intense flavors a nice one to savor in my opinion. (331 characters)

Poured pitch black with a huge bronze head. Soem carbonation. Nose was big on roasted malts, some black licorice. Taste was to the sweet side. Again, black licorice was dominant. Nice malts. Very smooth, light bodied...a little too light bodied i would have to say. Lingering sweetness...a touch of raisin off the finish. Alcohol warmth. As far as a stout goes, i was looking for a little more body and fullness. Drinkable but not where i might want a stout to be. (464 characters)

Presentation: 330 ml bottle with freshness date printed on the bottle (Best before September 2009).

Appearance: The pour is basically jet-black - held up against the light it reveals only small deep red hues. The liquid seems clear. The head is about 3 cm - bigger than expected and certainly bigger than many stouts - and its color is one shade darker than your ordinary cappuccino. It's a very thick and creamy head - almost reminiscent of a nitro-carbonated brew - and it stays for a while before settling into a ring of lacings. I must say, this beer looks very good.

Smell: Some quite powerful aromas of dark fruits - mostly black currants - and milk chocolate hit the nose. Plenty of roasted malts and coffee are there as well. A faint nutty aroma - perhaps of cashew nuts of almonds - finishes off the smell, which I enjoyed quite a bit, of this one.

Taste: More dark fruits and notes of ripe red apples blend with molasses for a big sweet flavor. Roasted malts are also rather assertive. There is also a somewhat unusual chocolate character present - consisting of a mix of both bitter and sweet chocolate flavors. In the slightly bitter finish, there is a small twang from the alcohol, a sweet taste of toffee and gentle hops. Towards the end, when the beer warms up, the chocolate flavor becomes more prominent. Overall, this one tastes good, but not extraordinary. It has a nice balance between some of the usual flavors found in a stout, and some flavors are even quite big and powerful - almost trying to enter the domain of imperial stouts.

Mouthfeel: Heavier on the carbonation and a bit livelier than I had anticipated. Semi-full (not medium though) body. Towards the end, it gets a little smoother.

Drinkability: This is a very good beer, but as already noted, not extraordinary. It looks and smells really good - the smell actually outweighs the taste, which is a bit of a disappointment. Somehow, it feels smaller than it actually is - the alcohol hides really well - but I don't know whether this is a good thing or a bad thing. However, irrespective of this, it's highly recommended and I would definitely try it again if it was offered to me, but I wouldn't make any huge efforts trying to get a hold of it. (2,283 characters)

I probably tend to over-rate this stout, having spent a year and a half cycling through Southern Asia, but it stands out so much compared to the general run of lackluster beers and second rate stouts that the difference is quite dramatic.

In a geographical area where finding even an 'adequate' beer is problematic, to tumble on a world class stout was a very pleasant shock. I never found this on tap, which I imagine would have been even better, but it ranks second in my experience to a nicely pulled Guinness pint in a pub in Ireland. (540 characters)

M&D: Heavy mouthfeel and full bodied. Very light but persistent carbonation goes well with the favors and heaviness at hand. At 8% I was expecting some warming but didn't really experience any. Goes down pretty smoothly. (595 characters)

Michael Jackson (the beer writer) had good things to say about this beer; he even landed his mug on the packag- ing somehow.

Massive tan head--four fingers' worth--rises slowly. Rocky, dense and bubbly, it drops to a thick lace that sticks all over the glass. Very fragrant with aromas of black currants, blackberries, cocoa powder and mild roast coffee. Amazing smoothness and medium creamy body with a lush mouthfeel. Quite malty to start, with a sweetness similar to sweetened coffee. The 8 percent ABV is deceiving to begin with, but after several sips, the palate warms right up. From middle to end come waves of roasted malt with undertones of dark bitter chocolate and faint espresso bean. Minimal hop bitterness, a little fruity and yeasty toward the end. Finishes on the sweet side with a long note of roasted flavor. (873 characters)

Tried this beer on a night out with my wife. Poured a nice dark black with a tan head a few inches, tasted exactly how I feel a good stout should and am definitely going to try to find some for home. (199 characters)

Presentation: 625ml brown bottle with a gold foil neck. MJ, the beer hunter, is pictured on the back of the label with a cheesy endorsement. Expiration date printed on the bottle.

Appearance: Black with brown hues. Pours a massive tan head with a creamy/foamy consistency, lots of glass stick and great retention. Unfiltered.

Smell: Caramel, light roasted notes, wet paper, touch of musty fruit.

Taste: A malty sweet brew, smooth and mature in character. Caramel, chocolate and mocha flavours are dominant with a touch of blackstrap molasses in the background. Wet paper flavours pull-thru revealing some oxidation of the beer. Soft, even mouthfeel. Alcohol is not evident in taste, but you can feel it working the brain. Mild astringent bite and dryness. Finish is chocolaty, a bit metallic and dries up.

Notes: Over-promoted by Michael Jackson and over-hyped in general. A pretty average sweet stout that has potential to be something better, but it never gets there. It sits somewhere between a dry Irish stout and typical sweet stout, leaning a bit too much towards the dry with its flat, one dimensional malt profile. Still at least worth a try for all of you stout lovers out there. (1,200 characters)

I was shocked at how good this was after hesitantly trying it for the first time. It is a solid stout with big flavor that will stand up to most anything. I can't put my finger on the taste but it has a nice sweet, but not too sweet, finish. (241 characters)